Minn. exports grow slightly in third quarter

Exports of Minnesota-made products grew tepidly in the third quarter compared to the same period last year.

The state's exports rose less than 1 percent over that period, the Minnesota Trade Office reported. Nationally, exports grew nearly 3 percent.

While sales to Canada, China, Japan and other key markets dropped in the third quarter, exports to Mexico, Saudi Arabia and other countries spiked, said Ed Dieter, deputy director of the Minnesota Trade Office. Export growth to Mexico was driven by office machine and computer parts, vehicle parts and soybeans in the third quarter, he added.

Sales to Minnesota's top two export markets, Canada and China, dropped, partly because of the export product mix. "Things like ores and slag and ethanol were volatile, were down and so pulled down those numbers," he said.

Overall, the state is starting to see more export strength in emerging markets in Central and South America and the Middle East, Dieter said. "That's very encouraging for the future."

International sales of Minnesota products climbed to $5.2 billion in the third quarter of the year.